Chapter 116
Chapter 116
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Ah, it’s still hilarious just thinking about that face again. He’s so expressive, it’s just too fun to tease him.”
On the way back to the dorms, Elias snickered.
Adelbert had just stood there flustered, but once it looked like the bureau chief would pass me right on the spot, he regained his composure and offered words of welcome.
The idea that someone who knew me as Nicolaus might hate Luca... well, it was obvious, but seeing it firsthand felt fresh.
“Stop teasing my little brother. What happened after the leg incident?”
“Sent another letter apologizing at Christmas. Haven’t seen him since.”
And yet he’d just barged in like that, mocked him, and left.
Classic Elias.
We warped back to Leo’s training grounds from the dorms, and this time Narke was there too. Pie, perched on his shoulder, waved a front paw at me.
Leo stood leaning with his wand in hand, grinning.
“When did my training grounds turn into a meeting spot, exactly?”
“Elias clearly wants to hang with you, and Luca was already scheduled to train with you anyway~”
Narke smiled casually as he said it.
“So, what’s up? If you’re gonna say you’re dragging me off right now like Elias, then no.”
“…….”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
He was so firm.
I could already picture the hellish future ahead.
Since I hadn’t trained properly since finals, he was surely about to push me to the brink now.
“That’s not it~ Luca. There’s something I need to talk about regarding Papal Court duties.”
“What is it? Need to move somewhere private?”
“Nah. I’ve been assigned to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith this time. It’s too much for me alone... mind hearing me out and helping if it sounds okay?”
This was the first time I’d heard this guy ask for a favor.
“What’s the job?”
“Exorcism.”
“…….”
“O~ I wanna do that too.”
Me, doing an exorcism?
It suddenly hit me that this was a fantasy novel I’d read.
Though, come to think of it, even in reality, I’d heard religious folks often talk about demons actually existing.
“Have you heard of exorcist priests by any chance?”
“The ones who beat up demons~”
Elias cut in, whistling like it sounded fun.
“Yeah. The Roman diocese asked the Congregation folks to handle it. I’ve been training in exorcism anyway.”
“Wait, hold up. I’ve heard the name, but Narke, you’re with them~?”
“Yeah.”
Narke gave a small, bashful smile. Elias was clapping like it was impressive.
‘Not just with them—he’s the minister in charge....’
This world really revolved around mana, no matter how you sliced it.
Of course, with his stats, it wasn’t surprising.
The vice minister of the Congregation—a level 9 appraisal skill user—hadn’t pegged me as religious.
But Narke had clocked me as an atheist with just his level 2 insight.
“Domestic operation?”
“Yeah. The Imperial Church requested the Papal Court.”
“What’s the method? I’ve never learned how to do exorcisms.”
“Oh, it’s fine. As long as you can wield divine power properly, it’s not that complicated.”
Narke’s eyes sparkled oddly.
There was no reason to turn down Narke’s request anyway.
“Sure, I’ll help.”
“Great~ Then I’ll tell Cardinal Nicolaus you’re joining too. It’ll go on record as your first official duty.”
And just like that, it was settled.
I hadn’t really felt the weight of becoming a cardinal since returning to the Empire, but hearing this made it sink in.
“Also, Luca. Can you pull an all-nighter by any chance?”
“Why?”
“Thinking we could head out at dawn.”
“Dawn? That soon?”
“Wanted to do some preliminary scouting. Any chance Leo or Elias could come with...”
“Meme meme me! I’m in!”
Elias shot up from his seat, yelling at the top of his lungs, and Leo clamped a hand over Elias’s ear.
“...How old are you exactly?”
“Turned 18 a few days ago~ Older than you, still stuck at 17!”
“A few months doesn’t...”
“A few months? I learned to talk first too~”
“Doesn’t change that you’re shorter.”
“I’ll grow more this year~”
Elias replied with a smug, relaxed grin.
Better not mention he’d still be a bit shorter than Leo even ten years from now.
‘Come to think of it, Luca’s already 18 by calendar age too.’
A little over two months now.
I hadn’t paid much attention back when I’d just arrived here and everything was chaos. By the Education Ministry’s school-year age, I was still 17, so it slipped my mind even more.
Narke listened to their banter with a smile, then asked Leo.
“What about you, Leo? Can you come?”
“I’ll go. But we can’t use divine power— that okay?”
“Just scouting for now~”
Leo thought for a moment, then nodded.
“Yeah, early in the semester anyway—no reviews needed. I’m in.”
“Awesome~ Glad we can all go together.”
“Wonder if Luca will be okay though.”
Leo stroked his chin, eyeing me like he was calculating something.
His words sent a chill down my spine for some reason.
* * *
“…….”
“What now~ Luca can’t go.”
Elias patted my back.
Four straight hours of training starting at 8 a.m., without a single break— I was spent.
I was literally sprawled on the floor.
I’d even gotten ready to leave, changed clothes and all, but once the tension wore off, I’d collapsed onto the bed.
‘At least these people don’t wear shoes into bedrooms like back home.’
Whether to console me or not, Elias just blurted out something random behind my head.
“Hey, four hours is impressive~ When I sparred with Leo as a kid, I’d be flat on my back in three minutes.”
I knew damn well he only lasted three minutes when he felt like slacking.
Leo, who’d come to my room to travel with us, ignored the nonsense and suggested to me.
“Next time, all three of us? Balance might be off, but it’d be good to learn Elias’s attack style too.”
“…….”
I let out a reflexive dry laugh.
If the point was learning Elias’s style, why not just pair up with him alone?
Then Elias’s face lit up like he’d realized something, and he grabbed my shoulder hard.
“Shall we?! I wanna try against Luca too! Hit me with some divine power attacks.”
“No... later. Not today.”
I didn’t want to hear about training anymore today.
‘Come to think of it, hasn’t been quite three weeks since I last checked my stats.’
Might as well now.
Lucas René Ascanien
Title: Lord Nicolaus
Stamina: +3.0 (+0.5) [+6.0]
Mental Strength: +1.5 (+0.6)
Mana: ?
Skills: +4.4 (+0.3) [+7.4]
Impression: -9.6 (+0.3) [-3] [+7.69523261]
Luck: +3.3 (+1.05)
Traits: Dawn777, Divine Power, Charm (Lv.2), Retry (Lv.1)
‘Oh.’
School impression score jumped from -6.8 to -3.
More importantly, final stamina at 6?
“Time to head out?”
“Sudden burst of energy? What happened?”
Elias clapped and laughed.
I sprang up, held out my hand, and Narke, who’d been sitting quietly watching, took it. A fierce wind hit my face in that instant.
* * *
“We here to vacation?”
I let out a hollow laugh at the table set even at this late hour.
Guess that’s why he wanted us all to come.
Our destination was one of the Empire’s premier resorts.
Not that we were purely here to play since it was a Papal Court request, but it lined up with a vacation spot, so he probably wanted to drag us along.
Narke pulled out some wine from somewhere and answered.
“Official deployment’s this weekend. It’s still Monday, so today’s just to get familiar with the area and rest up~”
“Got it. Then instead of ‘help me,’ just say ‘let’s go together.’”
“Ah, but Luca, I really need to move with you. Too tough solo.”
Narke grinned sheepishly.
If even he found it burdensome alone, I couldn’t imagine what was going on.
“Brought you guys today... well, realized we haven’t rested properly. Felt unfair to spend our two-week break just testing and working.”
Fair point.
I’d taken the exams on purpose to avoid going home, but they had no such desperate motive—plenty of reason to feel shortchanged.
Then Elias mumbled through a mouthful.
“Yeah~ Gotta sneak in some fun sometimes! Ah, if I hadn’t been held back, I’d have just skipped. Thought I’d die keeping that curse quiet.”
“Finish eating first.”
Leo said quietly from the side.
Anyway, seemed worth bringing Elias.
He was already shoveling food into his gut with a huge grin.
“Ah~ This is so good.”
“You ate dinner already—sure you can handle that much?”
“Digested it all in two hours after~”
Narke, sipping moderately while listening, shook the wine bottle.
“Want some? Just one glass each since we can’t get drunk.”
“Ah, finally... I’ve wanted a friend who gets this stuff for ages.”
“I’m good. You guys drink.”
Leo grimaced, clearly still scarred from the catacombs booze, and refused. Meanwhile, Elias poured his glass fast and downed it.
“Catacombs wine got you spooked~? Lost its kick the second the potion touched it. Nah, champagne’s not booze anyway. Just fizzy water.”
“...Not booze?! It’s just not your taste.”
And just like that, they dove into a champagne debate.
I watched them, then gazed out the window.
This noble estate was far from any village, surrounded only by forest and mountains.
Narke said the local noble had requested help because ‘people were occasionally getting demon-possessed.’ No divine power mages in the diocese, so it escalated to the Papal Court.
‘Rumors like that would tank the local economy hard.’
Known as the continent’s summer capital, nobles from all over flocked here for vacations.
Of course, it was midwinter now, and the key hot springs were under repair—no tourists.
The noble promised to open part of the bathhouse while we were here, so repairs must be nearly done.
As my thoughts wandered, their chat shifted to the local baths.
“Hey, we’re in Baden-Baden—skipping the springs would be a crime. Let’s go.”
“Right after eating? Hot exposure post-meal isn’t healthy.”
“Ah, doctor’s family...”
“...I say it for your sake and that’s what I get...”
In the end, health-conscious Leo holed up in the guest room.
Actually, everyone was wary—no one hit the springs. Instead, Elias and Narke headed out for preliminary scouting.
I lay on the bed, closed my eyes, and pondered.
‘Demons don’t really click for me.’
Even with the Church preaching their existence, most folks dismissed them as childhood bedtime monsters.
Even some clergy.
I’d thought the same, but now that I was in the Papal Court—even if honorary—I needed to take it seriously.
‘Time to build some cardinal credentials.’
Not the purest motive, but half-assing assigned work spelled doom for success.
Local papers had zilch beyond what Narke said—seemed they were suppressing rumors.
‘Nothing much to do.’
The downtime felt awkward.
I opened the exorcism rite Narke had given me.
Crammed the procedures and precautions into my head for a while, then closed it for a break.
Break or not, closing my eyes brought endless thoughts of the imperial family and Nicolaus.
“Leo.”
“Yeah?”
“The booze from that appraisal before—what were the results again?”
“Ah, didn’t explain fully? No clue on ingredients or mix. Probably made with stuff never imported to the Empire.”
Adrian Ascanien came to mind.
The crown prince’s hostility toward Elias hadn’t been this blatant.
‘Never thought the eldest would trip him up instead of Adelbert Hoehnzollern.’
Must’ve been desperate.
Unlike the novel, with someone in Elias’s corner, his attitude shifted.
Which meant I could be a target too, not just Elias.
With impression nearing 8, Nicolaus’s position was solidifying.
Public opinion no longer mattered.
With the crown prince and emperor warier than in the novel, revealing I was Nicolaus Ernst could spark issues.
‘Adrian Ascanien might team up with the emperor.’
Originally, I’d created Nicolaus Ernst to fool Adrian Ascanien. Let me roam the Empire freely without getting killed.
Reveal now, and Nicolaus and Luca would merge smoothly.
Problem: three people waiting to drag Nicolaus down.
‘“Lucas Ascanien” would make perfect bait to topple Nicolaus.’
Truth meant little to the masses. Sensational headlines hammered into ears and eyes became their reality.
Heretic or not, the emperor could smear me as one to sink Nicolaus.
But I had no intention of playing prey.
With my cardinal post handy, beefing it up seemed best to counter heresy accusations.
For standing in the Papal Court, nailing assignments came first.
‘Back to exorcism.’
No intel from docs... necromancy to bait one out?
‘Nah, that’s too much.’
Risk excommunication?
Catacombs heretics had me thinking extreme.
Come dawn, hit the neighborhood for intel the normal way.
That’s when Leo popped into view.
“Luca.”
“Jeez, you scared me.”
“Called you a bunch—didn’t hear. Sleepy? Crash.”
“Nah. What?”
“Let’s interview locals at 6. Demons or whatever... doesn’t click, but if it’s bad enough to call you guys, we gotta solve it.”
“You reading my mind or what?”
“Drunk?”
I shook my head and sat up.
“Nope. Let’s go later.”
Weird how he stepped up like it was his job now—habit maybe.
Fine by me.
Thud—
The bed shook suddenly.
Pie, who’d followed us and crashed on the pillow, snapped his head up.
I glanced at Leo, wondering, but he looked startled too, staring at his feet.
KABOOM—!
[Aaaaaaagh!]
“…….”
Chills raced up my spine.
My eyes met Leo’s.